Une Torsion de Destin
by The-Evil-Twin's-Good-Sis
Summary: It's been two years since she has heard from him, and Hermione is moving on. At least that was what she thought, but then she saw him again. HermioneRon
1. The Meeting

HOWDY! This is my first story ever, so please read and give me feed-back. I will take all kinds of criticism thrown my way. I also do not own anything Harry Potter related except my plot. Please tell me what you think. Thanks! ~Chiquitabanane  
  
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It was Friday night, the beginning of the weekend, and sitting alone in her corner office was none other than Hermione Granger. With her untamed hair flying freely in all directions and getting in the way, she sighed heavily. There was an aura of frustration lingering about her.  
  
"Ugh, finally, the last one, then I can go home and get ready for tonight," she thought to herself. It was already half past 5 and she had to be at Harry's house in an hour. It would take her half an hour to get home and shower, fifteen minutes to get ready, and another few minutes to eat something incase the food at Harry's was bad. He never really cared about how food tasted just as long as it was there.  
  
Hermione glanced down at the application in front of her. She had finally become an auror at the ministry, but the fight against Lord Voldemort was long over. It had been nearly ten years since her graduation from Hogwarts when she trained as an auror and fought against Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters. The uproar from the Death Eaters after he died had slowly calmed down until there were only one or two every few months. Things sure were much more boring when there was no evil to fight. She never was one for dueling, but now without it, she had no use for her cleverness. So, with too many aurors, the youngest were put somewhere else until they were needed again. Unfortunately, this meant sitting at a desk all day for Hermione. No more being useful.  
  
It was nearing June and the cold winter months were passing away, meaning graduation for the seventh years from Hogwarts was just around the corner. And, rather than being excited for the young witches and wizards who made it through those tough seven years, she was the one who had to go through their applications and find the ones to accept.  
  
She looked down at the application again. Hmm... Sean Peterson...second in his class...top marks in potions, defense against the dark arts and charms...not bad... he's kinda cute to. Damn, so many people want to be aurors! Can't they pick another profession? They all have decent enough grades to do well somewhere else. Why do we need new aurors anyway, we already have some on backorder, she thought to herself with a bit of frustration and annoyance. Glancing at the clock, she had not realized how much time flew by. It was already ten to six. With luck Hermione could make it to Harry's on time, but she was going to have to pray that the food was good.  
  
Throwing the application on top of the rest of accepted ones, she gathered her things so she could leave. She lived around the corner from the telephone booth above the ministry so there was no point to aparating in, so she wore muggle clothes and walked everyday. Besides, she needed the fresh air to wake her up in the mornings. Grabbing her fitted tweed coat from the back of her chair and her very large, overflowing purse from under the desk, she finally left the ministry. There were still a number of people there finishing up some last-minute work and some late arriving night shift aurors just coming in.  
  
Hermione waved goodbye to some night-shift acquaintances that she made from staying late so often, she turned from her desk and walked down the long corridor to the telephone booth in the front entrance. While peering into one of the many pockets of her purse to find her warm leather gloves, she bumped in to someone who was looking down at their watch.  
  
"Bloody Hell!" she heard them yell. She was bumped backwards while her purse flew to the ground, the contents spread across the floor. The stranger bent down to help her pick up her scattered belongings. "I'm sorry miss... Hermione? Is that you?"  
  
Hermione had already shoved everything back in her purse when she reached forward to grab the items in the stranger's hand. When she heard her name, she shot her head up to see who it was. She had not remembered being on a first-name basis with any of the night-shifters so she was curious as to whom the stranger was.  
  
His face being in the shadows, Hermione was straining her eyes to make out his features. He was rather tall with captivating green eyes that she could not turn away from. Those eyes looked so familiar to her, yet she could not match a name to the face. He stood up and brushed the invisible dust off of him and offered a hand to help her up. She willingly accepted the hand, and while he pulled her up from the ground, she caught a glimmer of his brilliant red hair and looked back into his dazzling eyes.  
  
"Ron? Ronald Weasley? 


	2. By Chance

Hello everyone! 3 reviews! I'm so excited you have no idea. I did not think I'd get one, if any. EEEEEE!!!!!!! Ok, now I am calm. Maybe...maybe not. Yay!!!! So, with the compliments that I received, I have written chapter two of the story and here it is. Sorry it is so late. I have not had any time with all the stuff I'm doing. But here it is, enjoy. Thanks again, Chiquitabanane  
  
`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~`~ `~`~`~ "Ron? Ronald Weasley? They stood there, staring at each other, for a couple minutes when they were suddenly brought back into reality by a growling sound coming from a few feet away. The two of them turned towards the direction the sound to find that it came from the Minister of Magic, George Finley. He had cleared his throat and was now peering at them with curiosity. Hermione felt the heat rise into her cheeks when she realized that she had been staring at the stranger for so long and still held his hand. She dropped it quickly and rested her hand in her other.  
  
"Hope I wasn't interrupting anything," the Minister said with a bit of humor in his voice.  
  
"No, nothing at all," Hermione was too quick to say it for as soon as the words left her mouth the Minister gave her and Ron a suspicious look.  
  
"Anyway," he turned to Hermione. "Have you finished going through the applications yet? I need them on my desk by eight o'clock tomorrow morning."  
  
"Yes sir, I went through them all and they're in a neat pile on my desk. But sir, if I may ask, can someone else go through them as well? I'm not quite sure if I've taken the right people for the job."  
  
"I trust you Hermione; no one else grasps the idea of confidentiality." Hermione looked down to hide the little smile that appeared on her face. No one working in the ministry could keep a secret except her. "Well, I must be moving along, I'm late for my meeting with Francis, and I'll see you tomorrow." He suddenly turned to the man that she was with. "Be careful, she's a dangerous one. You don't want to know what happens if you get in a row with her. Trust me, I've been there."  
  
The Minister turned and walked down the corridor to his office smirking. He had found the little incident to be very humorous.  
  
Now it was the stranger's turn to blush. He quickly turned away to try and hide it, though looking more awkward with every movement he made. He scratched his neck and looked back towards Hermione to end the awkward silence that had settled between them.  
  
Hermione had been thinking, not knowing that she was making the man in front of her more uncomfortable by the second. Is that really Ron? It doesn't really look like him, though of course it's been a long time and he has to have aged. She realized if it was Ron, she was going to have to end the silence, for Ron was never one to start things.  
  
"Don't listen to him, he's a bit on the crazy side," she was countering what the minister had said before.  
  
"He is a bit nutty isn't he?" he relaxed a bit. It was more of a statement then a question.  
  
It was weird talking to Ron. She had not spoken to him in two years. Like Hermione, Ron was an auror who, after the war ended, was sent to work somewhere else. He made up his mind to go to Romania and work with dragons, leaving Hermione in London. When he first arrived there he sent owls to her everyday, though as time went by Hermione received less and less, until one day, no more letters came. She had not heard news of him in more than a year and felt her aggression towards him slowly creep into her as they stood there, alone in the lobby.  
  
"Well, I better be on my way," He said to her.  
  
"As do I, I have to be somewhere, so if you will excuse me," Hermione replied rather tartly. A look of loss crawled onto Ron's face after she spoke, but she simply ignored it. She did not have time to deal with Ron and his lost chances.  
  
She grabbed the few items from his grasp, shoved them in her purse, and walked briskly towards the telephone booth.  
  
Opening the door she hesitated. Ugh, what am I doing? Should I go back and talk to him? I mean, I haven't seen him in so long he deserves a proper conversation. No, I can't. Be strong Hermione. You can do this. Just go inside, grab the phone and go home. Ahhh shut up brain!! She quickly picked up the phone. Be strong Hermione, it's better this way. Remember what he did to you, you can't just give in. She looked back over to Ron, but he was gone now. She could not help but feel sorry for herself; she lost the chance with him for the second time.  
  
She was so lost in her thoughts she did not understand how she had already made it to her front door. Her walk over was a blur. She remembered the telephone booth slowly going above ground, but when did she start walking out of it? She was not sure. Maybe her subconscious had taken over because she did not know how she could have easily made it anywhere with all the tears in her eyes.  
  
Walking into the bathroom, she looked at herself in the mirror before her. Her eyes were red and puffy. The last thing she wanted to do was go over to Harry's, but she knew she had to. There was no option of not showing. But what if Ron's there, what would she do then? She could not just stand in the corner or run around the house hiding from him. Could she? I might as well just go through with this. Not going would be so much worse. Going was the lesser of the two evils. Though who would consider a birthday party an evil? She hated that phrase. It was so negative. So pessimistic. She had to look at this as a glass half full kind of thing. It would all work itself out eventually. Yes, just that. I can deal with it. With that final thought, she turned on the hot water in the shower, set her clothes in a hamper, and got in the shower.  
  
The shower was just the thing she needed. Once she was in she felt better. The water washing away her thoughts, her mind was clear again. How could she have ever thought of not going to Harry's party?  
  
Within minutes of finishing her shower she was dressed and ready. Wearing a light, flowery sundress, after all it was the middle of summer; she was almost ready to go. The clock on the wall read 6:15. There were still fifteen minutes until she had to be there, but Hermione Granger, among many things, was never late, and she was not going to start tonight. She had not time to do anything with her hair so it lay disheveled on her shoulders. Grabbing her purse and wand without a second to lose, she aparated to the apartment that Harry shared with Ginny. 


	3. The Party

Hello! I'm very sorry that this has taken so long, but I had writers block but, due to the help of Caroline, my lord and savior, I was able to write this chapter. But anyways, thank again for the reviews, I appreciate all reviews, criticism or flames or whatever you want.  
  
chiquitabanane

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Hermione had arrived within minutes of her apparation, but stalled before ringing the doorbell to the apartment. _Do I really want to do this? What if Ron really does come? How will I be able to handle it? Oh shut it Hermione. You've already made it this far, no reason to turn back now. Everything will work out fine whether he is there or not. Oh but what if he comes over to talk to me again. I cannot handle this. Ugh, here I go again, talking to myself like some nut job. I think I really am becoming insane._ She looked down the hallway to see if anyone around her heard what she was thinking. _That's right Hermione; see if anyone **heard** you were **thinking**. I am most definitely off my rocker._ But, just to make sure she did not make a fool in front of anyone, she looked down the hallway again. It was quite a homey place. Not gaudy like some of those muggle apartment buildings that she'd seen. There were no fake crystal chandeliers or dozens of fake or copied paintings on the wall. Nothing was overdone here. There were, however, little lamps on the walls giving off just enough light to see a lovely, but still simple pattern on the walls. They were of a light, cream color, but perfectly appealing to the eye.

Finally setting her thoughts straight, she turned to the door in front of her. Apartment 2B, the 'best one in the building' according to Ginny. Apparently, it had a great view. Hopefully she would make it through the apartment to the balcony without running in to Ron.

Before she could think of something else that would drive her crazy, she pushed on the little buzzer to the left of the door. She heard the little humming noise go off when she pressed it, and after a minute a voice from inside called out to her.

"Be right there!" it said. Unfortunately, they came before Hermione could apparate away and save her self from the night to come. But, she was not a sear. How would she know how bad it was going to be?

Not a second too soon, a young woman opened the door in front of her. "My, oh my, 6:17, I must say I was expecting you sooner Hermione." She laughed quietly before welcoming her into her home.

"Oh, well, I took me quite a bit of time to get ready Ginny," Hermione told the woman in the doorway. "You see, I have to look extra special for tonight, it is Harry's birthday after-all. But you can't tell anyone. If word got out that I cared what I wore, I, well, let's just say it would not be pleasant."

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."

Immediately after walking into the apartment, she ducked her head. Just before Hermione came in, Ginny had enchanted the ceiling to make confetti constantly fall down. "Sorry Hermione," Ginny was saying to her. "I was just thinking about Hogwarts and I remembered the enchanted ceiling that they had and it made me think, 'hey, maybe I could do a similar thing with confetti.' So I tried it and guess what? It worked." Hermione could not help but laugh. Ginny had done a wonderful job of enchanting the ceiling, though _not as good as I could have done_, Hermione thought to herself. She was suddenly much happier about the night to come and was ready to face anyone who she may see later that night. Yes, even Ron. Though, she still hoped that he would not be there. But, when she moved deeper into the apartment, she found it was much more than just a birthday party for Harry.

Following Ginny out of the little front entrance where she had hung up her jacket and set her purse down, they head to the living room. Before she could start some small talk with Ginny, however, she saw two banners hanging from the ceiling. The first, decorated with little balloons and confetti read "Happy Birthday Harry." The balloons on the banner were floating around while the little confetti constantly fell to the bottom of it. _Leave it to Ginny to liven things up in any way she can_, Hermione smiled to herself, though it did not last long. For, within seconds of reading the first, to her horror she read the next. "Welcome back Ron." _Oh no_, thought Hermione, _Oh no, oh no! Ok Hermione, keep your cool. Just calm down and remember you are here for Harry, not **him**. You do not have to so much as look at him; you did not know he was coming._

Ginny noticed the look of horror spread across her friends face. _Oh boy, I knew this would happen. Damn Harry and his bad ideas._ Ginny quickly glanced at the ceiling, hoping the party would run somewhat smoothly. She hastily asked Hermione to help her with the food and drinks before she could ask questions.

Setting up for the party was just what Hermione needed to calm her thoughts and pull her self together. She was going to see Ron for the first time since he left, and the last thing she wanted him to notice was how much she had missed him.

Within ten minutes people started to arrive. First to arrive was Neville and Loretta Longbottom. Parvati and Padma arrived shortly after with their new boyfriends, who were, of course, twins. The guests soon began coming in at a steady pace. By quarter of seven, most had arrived. Towards the middle of the pack, Ron had walked in. However, Hermione had been too busy playing hostess to notice him.

Making her way back from the kitchen, a tray of wine in her hand, she walked through the parlor when she saw Ron in deep conversation with one of Harry's female teammates from England's National Quidditch Team. Hermione stood there for a minute, eyeing the two in what appeared to be casual flirting, though it seemed to be escalating the longer she stood there. Tears were welling up in the corners of her eyes and the pain was becoming too unbearable. She quickly scanned for a quick exit, but unable to do so. Without thinking, she turned away and collided with a Weasley twin, spilling wine all over them as they and the glasses fell to the ground.

"Where's the fire 'mione?" joked the twin on the ground with her. Upon closer observation, she realized it had to be Fred.

"I think it's over there," came from behind, as the George approached her, pointing to their younger brother.

"I'm glad it's not over here, I know I'm hot 'mione, but I'm not hot enough to be up in flames," Fred smirked, giving his brother a wink.

A quiet laughter erupted among the nearby guests who witnessed the little fiasco. Unfortunately for Hermione, their little 'fiasco' also attracted the attention of Ron. He had been waiting for the chance to approach Hermione all night and saw this as his opportunity. Without saying good-bye to Harry's teammate, Ron rushed over to Hermione.

Seeing Ron approaching, she quickly attempted to stand up and bolt for the door, though her attempt was in vein, for, upon standing up, she immediately tripped over Fred's leg and fell to the ground again. It was too late for her to try again, for there was Ron, standing above her and offering his hand to help her.

"No thank you, I think I can manage on my own," She shrieked. She hurriedly grabbed onto George's arm and pulled herself up, though almost pulling George down in the process. With that, she pulled out her wand, muttered a quick incantation, and had the mess cleaned up within moments.

Before Ron could process her rejection, she was out the door and into the hallway. Ron sighed before promptly running after her.


End file.
